Clipper (lighter)
Clipper is the brand name of a type of refillable butane lighter, designed by Enric Sardà and owned by Flamagas S.A.[1] since 1959.
The lighters are mostly produced in Barcelona, (Spain), while others are manufactured in Chennai,(India) and Shanghai, (China).[2] Clipper has a wide range of lighters, gas refills and other accessories. The first Clipper lighter was made in 1972, and now the worldwide level of production is around 450 million units a year. [citation needed]
Clipper is a division of the parent company Flamagas S.A,[3] which also distribute stationery and electronics for such brands as Casio and Daewoo[4]
Associations
Some people associate the use of the Clipper lighter with roll-your-own cigarettes. This is due to its removable flint system which is often used by smokers to pack tobacco in roll-your-own cigarettes. It is also often used in the smoking of marijuana also because the flint system doubling up as a tamper or "poke" and because it's shape allows the user to use the lighter without getting burned. [citation needed]
Collectors
Many people collect the Clipper lighter due to the wide variety of designs that Clipper put on their lighters, which tend to follow current trends. Clipper has unique collections and also a great printing quality so there's a product differentiation. During recent years the term "Clipper Mania" has been coined due to many Clipper consumers collecting all the designs the company offers, which is why the Clipper lighter is considered as highly collectable.[citation needed] Many are also decorated and personalised in post-production.
In popular culture
- British garage artist The Streets used the Clipper lighter as his logo.[5] The lighter (bearing the name of the artist) appears on all album covers bar the first album which in fact featured a Swan lighter. Their merchandise includes branded Clipper lighters.
- The Artist Damien Hirst also used the images of the Clipper lighter in a series of Artworks together with Silk Cut tobacco boxes.
- The authors Anna Hyndman & Graeme Milne wrote and published the novel "Figure of Eight" in 2010, with an original script showing a Clipper lighter as the main character and telling his life in the first person.